


As It Was

by Zebooboo



Series: Wasteland [10]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: M/M, More - Freeform, Slice of Life, i guess, in the tower
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-25
Updated: 2019-06-25
Packaged: 2020-05-19 14:38:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19359031
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zebooboo/pseuds/Zebooboo
Summary: It was...empowering, in a way. People trusted her and her knownledge and her judgement enough to ask her for lessons of all things. There was a world of difference between people trusting you enough to ask for lessons and trusting you to watch their back while they blew up Fallen ketches or Cabal bases.





	As It Was

**Author's Note:**

> This was a joy to write, I dunno why, I'm very happy with this one

They left.

Schala cracks open an eye to take a quick look around. Her chair was moved and Tyr was sleeping on his pillow but nothing else was touched.

She heaved herself upright and craddled her head in her hands. Her head was silent and her fingers warm. The smell of rain and damp earth still clang to the sheets. What a mess.

She swang her legs over the edge of the bed and walked over to sit on the chair, leaning against the bench. What was she doing? Making a nuisance of herself. Her hands pressed against the unyielding metal of her forehead for a bit before dropping them and reaching for her own data pad, hidden under a pile of rags and screws.

Her fingers hovered over the screen before punching in her credentials and logging into the system. Immediately it started buzzing in her grasp, messages and announcements piling in.

She gave it a moment for the screen to stop flashing through message previews and notifications of all kinds before starting to scroll through.

Ikora's message was at the top of the list. She wanted to discuss the issue of her confinement, throw together a set of missions she could take part in with the appropriate team, maybe they could continue their research into Light manipulation next week? It had started getting more loose in it's wording towards the end. Schala sighed, Ikora was worried. She'll reply soon.

Next up where some quickshot messages from Cayde, all casual like, checking on her and dropping the odd joke about upright Titans. After a couple hours he started just dropping anecdotes and quips constantly. She didn't want to call the messages frantic, but they made up the bulk of her unread folder. She didn't even know what to say as an answer.

She let those be and checked further down. Some Guardian specific announcements about the appropriate use of stairs instead of Sparrows. A couple Tower wide reminders about the safety regulations. Some people asking for specific specialties to take along on some odd mission or other and...Oh.

She squinted at the unknown contact for a minute. That name was...vaguely familiar. Oh wait it was a group communication. Hmm, both names were familiar. Was it from those couple of missions she'd run with some fireteams who'd been missing members some months ago?

She scratched at her cheek idly, trying to scrounge up enough brain to remember where she'd heard those names. Everything was a bit hazy about her memory beyond the basics right now. The fog will clear up soon enough, but for now it was...muddy.

She grumbles and flushes all the notifications. She'll get back to all of this, it's just- she needs a minute.

She picks up a small ball of solid metal she'd shaped yesterday. It's small enough to roll around her palm and fit into the dip she makes if all her fingertips touch to make a cone.

She fiddles with it, running it between fingers and wedging it between plates to feel the odd stretch. She pinches it and looks it over. Smooth and unblemished and with no impurities popping like pock marks anywhere.

On impulse her other hand rummages through her storage drawers, picking out a bit of scrap and dumping it on the table. She brings forward a small scale and drops the ball on it. She picks and chooses pieces and dropping them on the scale, she has just barely enough small tidbits to get to equal weight.

She gathers it up in her palm, slowly bringing the heat up. Carefully to not make it a runny mess but just enought to make it malleable, soft, so she can knead it. It takes some careful holding and rolling but after a bit she stops heating her palms and keeps rolling it slowly in her hands. Her movements slow, methodical, mechanical and her mind begins to wander off.

She wonders why Feros decided to keep her company like that. Why spend time just...sitting there. Why bother. The warmth felt nice but the why wormed around her mind. A persistent little thought running laps around her brain.

She wonders if it would create problems between Cayde and Fee. Again. She hoped not. She knew how it looked from the outside. Intimate at worst, provocative at best. And she can't find it in herself to say she feels anything of intimate or carnal or romantic nature towards Feros. Or Cayde for that matter, even if their chat history would beg to differ, with the easy banter and teasing in every second message.

The new little ball was still hot, scorching, but the shape was good, no odd bumps or dips and Schala craddled the slightly glowing metal marble in hand while she moved to fill a small container with water and dipping it inside. The steam blew in her face and she blinked at the fog.

She checked it against the window's light, critical eye searching for any obvious mishaps. Satisfied she set it aside to rest and cleaned off her hands. She sat back at her chair and stared at her bed crossly.

It messed with her fuzzy head more than she cared to admit and she struggled to understand why. She _cared_ for them, there was no doubt about that. She cherised the ease and the confidence with which they accepted her and guided her and the company and the conversations and all the casual touches that made her tense involuntarily but were welcome and always gentle.

But it threw her for a loop and she wondered why.

\---

It was dark when her datapad buzzed again and Schala jerked from her slump in her chair. She groaned at the stiffness in her neck and back, the twinge of pain in her shoulders. She stared blearily as the screen of the pad faded and had she really been so drained to fall asleep in her chair after three minutes of doing nothing?

She dragged it closer and opened up the new message. Oh well, not exactly new. Just a new addition to the mystery group communication.

_TM: "We apologise for the abruptness of our messages, Miss Schala. If you do not feel comfortable with our request please feel free to ignore these messages."_

What? Request? She scrolls up to the top, just a couple of bubbles worth of text.

**_Guardian, Titan, Meera-3 & Guardian, -, Schala-2_ **

_M3: "Hello, Miss Schala! Just wanting to let you know your advice and tips were amazing! The Light felt so much easier to grab and my grenades actually worked! Only had one bust! Lord Shaxx kept shouting in my ears about it! He even dragged me to the side to congratulate me after the match! I told him you helped me out and he said he should have expected something like this from you! Anyway, thank you again!"_

_*M3: "Oh and um, if you don't mind, could you help me and Thoj out with some general Light manipulation? Thoj said you were doing research with Master Rey on the subject and he really wants to talk to you or Master Rey about it and Master Rey is always kind of busy."*_

**_Guardian, Warlock, Thoj Myde entered communication channel._ **

_TM: "I apologise about the offhanded request Miss Schala, Meera can get very excited at times. Though your lesson was very enlightening and useful, if you believe you could accept our request we would be extremely grateful. At your convenience of course."_

Schala read through the messages again, scrolling up and down slowly. She blinked and the names clicked back into recognition. They were the duo at the training room! The Titan who couldn't make grenades and the Warlock who'd been trying to help them out.

She'd spent some time trying to string together explanations about the vague feelings and ways the Light actually felt and worked for her without becoming too swept up by the whirlwind in her head and the chilliness trying to muddle up her understanding into something outside of reality.

Apparently she'd done a good enough job for Shaxx to commend it. Though she wonders why he would 'expect something like this from her'. And now she had two potential students in her hands. It was...empowering, in a way. People trusted her and her knownledge and he judgement enough to ask her for _lessons_ of all things. There was a world of difference between people trusting you enough to ask for lessons and trusting you to watch their back while they blew up Fallen ketches or Cabal bases.

Schala vibrated, feet kicking back and forth with childlike joy. This was new and interesting and oh, sweet Light so amazing. She giggled but stopped abruptly. It was amazing but would she live up to whatever expectations they had? She hadn't been the most focused or cognizant yesterday and that might have actually helped with her explanations, otherwise she tended to go off on tangents about small things. Ikora didn't mind them, as they provided more context to work with in their research, but wouldn't always be good when _teaching_.

Her fingers hovered over the keypad, uncertain and most certainly hesitating. They were asking for help, nicely too. She didn't want to disappoint them. But was she really the best for this? She hopped off her seat and started pacing around the room, agitated.

That was how Tyr found her when he woke up. Immediately he flew over to her side and blinked at her and then the pad. He read through it quickly and gave a thoughtful rotation of his shell. Schala kept pacing.

"Are you considering it? Schala?"

She stopped walking, bounced on the balls of her feet and blew air in frustration. Her mouth was pulled into a frown.

"I want to. I just, I don't know. I don't think I should be the one for the job. Other Guardians are probably much better at teaching than me." Her ear wings dropped slightly.

"Well, it's not like there are any dedicated instructors for anything. New Guardians go to the Crucible until either Lord Shaxx clears them for patrols or they get picked up by older Guardians, or fireteams."

Schala's frown deepened. So her being sent out on missions right away had been weird. Maybe her solo missions were even weirder. That was probably why Feros had got mad with Cayde, back when she'd just arrived at the City. She'd essentially been slotted into recon missions before she even knew what was going on.

She glanced between Tyr and the pad once more. No instructors huh? It was easy to believe, she hardly ever saw the same Guardian in the halls two days in a row. If nobody was around for any length of time then there would not be anyone to actually teach. Except maybe Feros? Though his schedule had only cleared so he could help her out, before that she'd hardly see him around.

Her fingers started tapping out a message haltingly. Tyr settled on her shoulder.

_S2:"I have free time tomorrow if it's alright with you two. Let me know."_

\---

An elbow dug into Feros' side and he twisted away from the offending limb. He sunk his toes against the back of Cayde's knee and watched the leg bounce right up against his balcony's rails with a bang. Cayde's fingers darted to tease at the exposed silicone at his neck and he cringed away at the staticky sensation. They were gonna fall off the balcony at this rate with all their jerking around.

Feros grabbed the tickling fingers and looked at Cayde with narrowed optics but kept his mouthplates resolutely locked in place. Cayde waggled his eyebrows at him and reached out with his other hand for Feros' neck. He grabbed that one as well and bumped his knee against the Gunslinger's with the movement. Cayde wiggled his fingers against Feros' palms.

They stayed like that, holding hands and looking at each other with barely concealed mirth. A boot nudged the Nightstalker's bare foot, along the arch and made him curl his toes. Cayde snickered.

"That's it."

Feros crossed their arms and kicked Cayde's flimsy chair from beneath him. He got up and twisted them around with Cayde against his chest and plopped down of the floor. Cayde fell into him with a yelp and Feros wrapped his legs around Cayde and crossed them over the other's legs, their arms tangled around Cayde's shoulders.

There was a brief moment of struggle but Feros just threw his considerable weight forward and folded them over.

"Ugh, get off me you fucking wall, you should have been a Titan."

Feros chuckled and leaned back against the actual wall. Cayde put up little resistance at the manhandling, relaxing back into Feros after a bit. Feros sighed.

"You wanna talk to me about it?"

Cayde shifted, tested the hold on his hands and found it unyielding. He settled again with a huff. There was another moment of silence and Feros thought that in the end Cayde regretted saying yes to talking. He sighed and let go of the hands and wiggled upwards in the tiny space of his balcony, stuck as they were between rail, chairs and half the coffee table.

He shoved the table back and pulled one chair back to its place in the kitchen. He started making coffee. There was some odd shuffling and Cayde walked inside carrying the other chair. Feros doubled the coffee dosage and grabbed two mugs.

When he sat back on the chair with the coffee Cayde had taken off his cloak and scarf and drapped them over his chair. It put Feros a bit on edge, since Cayde would not voluntarily take off either unless he was sleeping or cleaning up.

Cayde fiddled with the mug handle, taking a sip or two before propping a hand on the table and resting his head on it, looking everywhere but at Feros who was tugging at the frayed edges of his own cloak in agitation.

"I miss them you know. More than anything. And those tiny clues that they were alive once is usually all that keeps my going." Cayde's voice sounded loud after the prolonged silence. Feros looked away from the other Hunter.

"Sometimes I think they might not be real, that they are completely different people than what I think and feel like going crazy." The Ace of Spades clicked against the wood of the table, Cayde's fingers rubbing small circles over the handle.

"At least, after I got Risen, I know that everyone who's gone at least was _real_." He chuckled, humorless. "Lush and Tevis and Erianna and Wei Ning, Ana, Saint, even Eris! All of them. I _know_ or knew, they are dead but they existed." Cayde stared hard outside the window before sighing and rubbing a couple of fingers against his horn in an unconscious gesture.

"And then there's Andal." Feros' eyes flicked over to Cayde. He was still resolutely looking outside, eyes trained on the Traveler above.

"We...we were partners. You know that. Got into all sorts of trouble, running ops, grabbing loot, our little group started out with me and Andal and... it was good. For a long time it was great even. Found Tevis, bastard was already old by the time we met him. I picked up Shiro cause he was fun and every kind of good trouble. Shiro picked up Lush cause be liked the kid. Things were awesome." Cayde's hands waved between them, a small smile played on his face. It dropped a moment later.

"I miss him so much Fee, it hurts. And I just... You know when you found Taniks? When you ripped him apart? That felt like a piece of heaven." His fist banged against the table, jarring the mugs and made Feros a bit apprehensive with the manic glint on Cayde's face. But it melted away into tiredness.

"I miss him a bit too much sometimes. And that...It's just not fair. To you." Cayde turned to look at him and Feros felt lost. He didn't know how to answer or even how to react. He was great at listening, truly, but actually comforting Cayde about this? He felt like he was floundering, mouth going lax. They were hardly...anything! For all that Shiro called them both idiots, and he was right, they... hadn't actually done anything. Whatever was there, just... was.

"To me? Cayde we..." A hand shot and tapped his mouth closed. Cayde stared hard at him.

"You're important to me. Alright? Gonna get this out here, even if we don't get around to anything. Since Shiro is right and we're that big idiots." Cayde chuckled and Feros giggled a bit and moved the fingers away from his face. He kept a light hold on them.

It...it felt nice to hear. A small spark jumping in his chest and an involuntary tug at his lips but the issue remained.

"...It's normal to miss someone Cayde. Especially since you were together like that." He kept his voice light, giving a small squeeze at the fingers in his hand. Cayde looked down at the table, then at their hands and he squeezed back. Feros' throat lights lit up in a low yellow.

"I'm gonna be around as much as I can be Cayde. For anything you need. You know that." He felt a bit choked up. He honestly felt his voice crackle a bit. Embarrassment burnt a bright orange.

Cayde laughed and reached around his head to tap their foreheads together carefully, around his horn and Feros' bumps.

They'd be fine. They'd be fine...

\---

"Miss Schala! Help please! I can't smother the grenade! It's getting bigger!"

"Just stop feeding it!"

"HOW DO I DO THAT! MISS SCHALA!"

"I'm coming!"

"MEERA STOP GIVING IT LIGHT!"

"PLEASE DON'T SHOUT THOJ! I'M TRYING!"

"TRY HARDER!"

"Let me grab it. Meera! Take your hands away! MEERA!"

\---

Schala fumed. Literally. Her robes where smoking slightly along the shoulders and arms, all of it blackened and burned and completely ruined. Meera and Thoj were standing in front of her and Shaxx with heads bowed while the Titan bellowed at them about proper measures taken so that accidents would not blow up four training rooms.

Well, not _exactly_  four rooms to be fair. Only the doors and windows had been busted up from the sonic wave and only the one they had actually been in sustained any sort of structural damage and most of it had been spiderweb cracks along the floor.

Schala's arms still tingled from leftover Light that she tried to extinguish. She doesn't want to know how awful the damage would have been if she hadn't pulled the grenade out of Meera's hands.

Shaxx gave a final shout and showed them towards the room the Vanguard was. They nodded and dragged their feet while Shaxx watched them walk through the doors to talk to their respective Vanguards. Once the door closed behind them Shaxx turned to her and Schala suddenly felt tiny and already scolded.

He harrumphed and seemed to sigh. His arms uncrossed and settled on his hips. Schala shrank back. "Your responce was admirable. But next time I would appreciate a notification of your, 'classes', starting."

She nodded and kept her head down. They'd started out awesome. Some general theory and handling techniques were explained, coffee was passed around from Thoj's thermos and then some small exercises. The grenades came after. Spectacularly.

Meera started showing off what they'd learned on their escapades in the Crucible and somewhere along the way Thoj  
joined in and Schala moved back to let them have their fun. Until Meera got tired enough to lose control and here they are.

"As there were no injuries and minimal damage was sustained, no punishment will be issued to the Titan and Warlock." Schala barely sighed in relief before realising _she_ wasn't included in that sentence.

"But since you _were_ the senior Guardian present and the self-appointed instructor, you will have to contend with _my_ expectations." Her throat flashed bright in alarm before she could hide it. A feeling of overhanging doom settling on her. Shaxx sounded far too gleeful.

"I have some new Guardians who cannot, by the Traveler's Light, realise that shooting is not the only skill Guardians need." He crossed his arms across his broad chest and Schala's mouth pulled into a confused frown. If this is going where she _thinks_ it's going....

"I'm sure seeing you in action will convice them otherwise." He leaned down closer to her face and she swore, if there wasn't a shit-eating grin behind the Titan's ever present helmet, she'd eat her knives.

"So, Nightstalker, tell me. Will you show them the best of both light and dark?" He drew up back to his full height and Schala nodded. She twisted a palm up and closed her fingers around the ghost handle of the Spectral Blade and then let it go. She hasn't heard a single whisper or seen a flicker today. It was a good day.

"Good! I'm sure they would also appreciate you helping them with sharpening their abilities both in and out of the Crucible!" Schala blinked owlishly. Out? Of the Crucible? Shaxx threw his head back and laughed.

"Go get ready for battle Guardian! Concern yourself only with the fight ahead for now!"  
Schala nodded and turned away to change into a different set of armor. Pity, she'd liked these robes but there was no saving them.

\---

Feros was getting tired of running through the Tower. He swears, Schala is a damned trouble magnet. He'd heard there was an accident and that Shaxx had taken over her punishment. That could only end badly. Cayde was just a step behind, trying to get him to relax a bit. Shaxx wasn't going to make her suffer, it can't be _that_ bad! Feros wasn't so sure.

Shaxx was conducting a match when they got to his station. He was alternatively praising and scolding the different teams and it took a moment for Feros to realise something sounded odd. One team had only one person and he knew exactly who.

He twisted to look at the monitors and saw a vague shape running through the arena, a cluster of Guardians dropping like flies, their Ghosts popping up like gravemarkers and the Shaxx announced a team wipe. At the end of it the shape dropped the camouflage and Schala was standing there, clutching the Spectral Blades and clad in some thrown together armor pieces that most definitely had nothing to do with her usual robes.

He gaped at the screen while Cayde started laughing. "Did Firefly just drop an entire team solo?!" He was waving arms around in excitement, grabbing Feros' shoulders and shaking them, his whole face lit up bright.

Shaxx muted the mic after barking out the order to take up positions for the last round. "She is magnificent! Weaving between Solar and Void like it's a careless dance. These new recruits are getting a good taste of the Light! Young Wolf, you trained her, correct? You should be proud."

Feros was too dumbstruck to do more than nod. He'd been worried Schala was getting punished for something stupid and here she was, going one versus six in the Crucible and setting kinderguardians in their place.

The last round will be a massacre, as were the previous two rounds, Shaxx reassured them, much to Cayde's delight. He was mumbling at Feros' side about bets and all the glimmer he'd get from everyone and Feros just clamped a hand over the other's face when Schala pulled her flaming sword out. He wanted to see this.

She flew through the air, cameras changing angles, paning around for a good angle to show both her and the Guardians scattered around the map. She twisted around a corner and pierced her blade straight through a Warlock's chest, he crumbled into ash and the accompanying Titan had barely thrown a punch that caught Schala in the side before the sword was poking through the other side of the Titan's neck.

Her flames burned brighter for a moment before dissipating and she ducked inside the buidlings to continue her hunt, pulling out her sniper rifle from her back. She perched at the top of the buidling, settled there for a few nerve wracking minutes while they watched the enemy team run around trying to find her before one of them dropped dead with a bullet in their head.

By the time they got to her perch she had already left and a swath of flames dropped in from the window to explode and engulf the entire room. Another down from a grenade and two injured. Only two left.

They run under cover, slowly replenishing their shields, taking care to watch each other's backs and keep at least one roof over their heads. They were almost back to spawn when the Hunter of the two shoved the Titan out of the way and pulled their own Arc Blades out to block Schala's Spectral ones that were almost at the the Hunter's neck.

Feros snorted. You don't get into a knife fight with Schala. You'll only get cut into ribbons.

The struggle was brief. The match would have been briefer too, but Schala seemed to run out of power by the time she finished putting down the Hunter and the Titan took advantage of the opening. Schala was stomped into the ground by the Striker.

Shaxx announced the death and there was a moment of silence while the Titan on screen tried to catch their breath.

"Congratulations on taking a round! But the winner is Schala, two to one. I'm bringing you all back, standby."

Cayde whooped in victory and laughed. Feros shook his head in amusement. What was Shaxx up to?

"Cayde, do go bring me those forms about recruiting instuctors, I'm sure some of them are still laying around. Her screening will begin immediately after they come back, I'd like to have them ready."

The Hunter duo straightened up and looked at each other before Cayde walked off to find the paperwork. Feros settled against the wall, he wanted to see this.

\---

"Have I made myself clear recruits?! Your Light is your greatest weapon, you'd do well to remember than. Listen and learn _well_ , I believe the demonstration you were given is satisfactory?"

A round of nods followed Shaxx's tirade, everyone sporting singed armor and cuts across clothes and belts and more than a few nicks. Schala had done a number on them all, Feros noted from the side.

Schala herself barely looked affected, save for the way she seemed to adjust her gear once in a while, not yet having broken it in. It also looked like a mess, even if she had slapped similar shaders on everything to be more presentable. She wasn't wearing a bond. Or even a cloak.

Shaxx nodded back at the new Guardians before him and then put a hand on Schala's back and nudged her forward. She glanced up at him, uncomfortbale for a moment, before she walked up front at the peristent hand.

"Schala here has volunteered to help you hone your abilities. Any questions and difficulties you have about the use of the Light you will direct to her. You can discuss schedules and lessons among yourselves. We will see if having someone knowledgable on the subject to guide you will be enough to get you to acceptable levels of competency."

Feros hid a snort in his hood. From the little they had had managed to show, it would be some time before any of them get to go on patrols. He watched as the small crowd hang back, walking to the back of the room while Shaxx pulled Schala aside to speak in low tones with her for a moment. Feros itched to go listen in, but before he'd taken a step forward Shaxx clasped a hand on her shoulder and nodded at Schala, moving away.

Schala nodded back and Feros managed to catch her eye as she turned to signal the Guardians to gather round. She gave a small smile and pointed a hand at him and then at her mouth with a questioning motion of her hand. 'You want to talk?'

He nodded at her and waved at the other Guardians and then threw his hand over the shoulder. 'After these guys.' He really needed to teach her to sign. She already had an aversion to speaking, might as well.

She nodded back at him and started sorting through schedules with the gaggle of Kinders.

\---

Cayde found them later back at Feros' apartment sitting face to face in the balcony have a slow conversation in simple sign. He pitched in excitedly and Schala balked at the sudden movements and quick motions looking at Cayde's hands in inceasing panic.

She slapped Cayde's hands away and flipped him the finger in his face. Cayde snorted and pouted. He pulled the coffee table at the door and hopped on it to watch them continue the lesson.

At some point when they took a break she looked at them both pointedly and pulled out her knives and pushed the points carefully against their chests. She shook her head slowly.

They shared a look between them and nodded, no more holding leashes.

She holstered the knives and the frown left her lips. She took out her data pad and slowly tapped out a message to Ikora and then setting it aside. The lesson in sign continued well into the night.

They were fine. They will _be_ fine.

**Author's Note:**

> I really wanna do something about s/d week on twitter by ActuallyHurry (awesome stuff q_q) but probably not something from the prompt list and probably later, but for now i got this out right at the end of my finals to celebrate! (i did good hehe!)


End file.
